The Damaged Hearts
by BleedingRose152
Summary: A story of how two long lost friends find and change each other, and try to overcome their difficult pasts. (You can give me your opinions and reviews, just don't be rude about it. BTW, I didn't draw the cover pic for it, I simply added the words. And, I do not own Naruto or anyone in it, just my OC. All credit for that goes to its respective owners.) Enjoy!
1. Chapter 1

Darkness: a blackened void that fills their lives to the very brim. No, not the brim… They each have one small ray of light. However, that light had been savagely ripped from their grasp at a young age. Now, as they grow older, the darkness continues to blot out all hope for them, the light becoming fainter and fainter. There is little hope in their damaged hearts that they will ever find their light again. This is their story…

Aaliyah Shahar was a little girl of Hebrew descent. Her family migrated to the ninja world soon after she was conceived, searching for a better job for her assassin father, Uziel. They were successful, and thus, Aaliyah was born in the ninja village called Sunagakure.

However, her father was a cruel man who despised women. Being as Aaliyah would be his third daughter when he only wanted sons, he hated her from the moment he laid eyes on her. Not to mention, the strange aura that surrounded her birth: the angels sang, and all beasts howled in the night, be they tanuki, bakeneko, turtle, monkey, horse, slug, kabutomushi, ushi-oni, or kitsune. Uziel opted to leave the child in the desert to die, but his wife Eliora was a compassionate woman. She refused to obey her husband's wishes and convinced him to keep her on the condition that she would become his servant.

Aaliyah was an unusually small and frail child, though she possessed a kekkei genkai. Because she was pushed away by her father, she was pushed away by others as well. It seemed for a time that only her mother and two sisters loved her.

Upon Aaliyah's third birthday, Eliora was deemed Suna's ambassador to a fellow ninja village, Konohagakure. She immediately left with Aaliyah and the youngest of her two sons, Malachi. They lived in the village for two years, during which Eliora trained her children in medical jutsu.

At the end of the two years, Uziel determined to punish his wife for leaving. His daughter Arella tried to stop him, but he murdered her. He then continued on his way to Konoha, where he kidnapped his wife and brutally slaughtered her. All the while, little Aaliyah was having visions and watched the entire incident occur.

When morning came, the children arose and found no trace of their mother. Malachi assumed they had been abandoned and, vowing to protect his sister, changed their names to Kimura Ayame and Akinobu. He took her back to Suna, and there, she found her light…

Sabuka no Gaara was the powerful son of the Yondaime Kazekage, the leader of Sunagakure. While he was still in the womb of Karura, his father had the elder Chiyo seal the demonic sand spirit Shukaku within him. Thus, Gaara was born prematurely, and stole away his mother's life. However, in her dying breath, she swore to always protect her son, causing her will to seep into the sand he would later carry on his back.

The sand always came to Gaara's aid, and he grew up never knowing physical pain. But he was well-acquainted with emotional pain. Because he was Shukaku's jinchuriki, everyone ran from him. They hated him and feared him. They called him a monster and never acknowledged his presence in the world. Not even his father or two siblings. Only Yashamaru, his maternal uncle, seemed to care. Gaara was unbearably lonely, until one day, his light came to the village…

Seven years have passed since they found their light. Both of them are in a dark place, far from the reaches of any man. If only they still had their light…


	2. Chapter 2

The Forest of Death was silent; not even the birds sang. Thunder roared in the distance as the storm-blackened clouds crept closer. Five teams had reached the tower in the Forest's center. The second part of the Chunin Exams was scheduled to end soon.

Gaara was impatient, and obviously tense. His eyes kept diligent watch on the other teams and observed around the tower for any others to come. Kankuro and Temari saw he was losing his grip on his nerves. It was happening slowly, but it was happening, nonetheless. Kankuro remembered how Gaara had slaughtered the Amegakure Ninja. He remembered how he had let his temper explode. Gaara's words to him echoed in his thoughts…

_ "Stop, Gaara…" Kankuro had said._

_ "Are you afraid? …You are such a coward…" Gaara mocked._

_ "Gaara! I know you're all right, but this is too dangerous for Temari and I! And we only need one scroll! Any more is pointless!"_

_ "Don't tell me what to do, you piece of trash."_

_ "Give it a rest!" Kankuro demanded as he grabbed Gaara's collar. "Why don't you just listen to your big brother, jaan?!"_

_ "I've never once thought of you two as my siblings. Get in my way… and I'll kill you."_

Kankuro shuddered in anger. He hated how he feared his younger brother. He had a strong dislike for children anyway, so it irritated him more than it should have.

Temari watched Gaara carefully, searching for any sign that the thing she feared most was about to break free. She could feel the tension between her brothers. She saw it growing. Temari adorned a happy and airy persona, attempting to lighten the mood. She was about to say something, but was interrupted by Gaara.

"Uchiha Sasuke's team just arrived with Yakushi Kabuto's team," he informed.

"They're probably the last teams that will pass," Kankuro stated, glaring at Gaara.

"Well," Temari thought, "the exam ends in about twenty minutes. We'll be out of here soon…"

The twenty minutes could not have gone by slower. Sasuke's and Kabuto's teams came in close to the end. The examiner followed.

"You guys are the only ones who pass the second test. You have ten minutes to walk around the tower as you please, but don't leave. Report upstairs when the ten minutes are up. No sooner, no later."

She walked out after she finished. Gaara immediately stood up and headed for the door.

"Where are you going, Gaara?" Temari questioned.

"None of your business. Stay here," Gaara commanded.

Kankuro and Temari looked at each other worriedly as their brother left the tower.

Gaara moved slowly. The rain seeped through the dark clouds that now covered the Forest. Lightning danced in the sky above him. The rain soaked his Sand Armor; it got heavier with each step. Gaara ignored it and kept trudging along.

Suddenly, he almost tripped on something. He growled angrily and glowered at the ground. It was a foot. Confused, Gaara's eyes traced back to its owner. A young girl lay unconscious in the grass. A baby panther slept in her hands, and she clutched onto it with all her strength. She was dirty and covered in dry blood. She was obviously starved and hurting. Her long black hair and tender face looked familiar to Gaara. He also recognized the white sash tied around her head, which had the kanji for "flower" stitched in black on it. Realization struck him like the lightning over him.

"Ayame…" he whispered. He glanced around him, and against his usual nature, decided to take her with him. He scooped up the panther and gently cradled it in the white cloth holding his Sand Gourd in place, and slipped his arms under the girl. He quickly noticed how small and fragile she felt… Something bad had happened to her, and recently.

Gaara ran through the Forest and back to the tower. He sighted a paramedic inside.

"You…" he snarled.

"Hm? What's the problem?" the paramedic asked as he turned to him.

"Take her. Find out what's wrong with her. When you're finished, bring her back to me."

"I don't think I can help anyone injured in the test that didn't pass…"

"She wasn't taking part in the exams! And I think you will take care of her…" Gaara grinned a devilish grin, frightening the medic. He sheepishly agreed and took Ayame from Gaara's hold. Gaara smirked with satisfaction and returned upstairs to meet with his siblings.

"Hey, where'd you go?" Kankuro questioned upon his return.

"Just go upstairs, idiot," Gaara hissed, causing Kankuro to grimace. Temari sighed.

The three followed the other ninja upstairs to begin the preliminary for the third test.

"Hey… She's waking up!" a man's voice echoed through the haze.

"Wh… Where am I?" Ayame mumbled. Her eyes fluttered open slowly. "Who-Who are you?!" she asked, quickly becoming alarmed by the group of people swarming around her.

"Shh… Calm down, sweetheart, we're doctors. We won't hurt you. We just want to help…" a soothing voice comforted. Ayame looked at the woman speaking. "My name is Hanae. This," she pointed to another woman," is Kasumi." She gestured to the three men. "They are Akito, Kamin, and Denji." Hanae smiled. "What's your name, sweetheart?"

"Ayame… Kimura Ayame…" Ayame answered, fidgeting in pain. "Where am I?"

"You're in a tower in the Forest of Death. Don't worry, you're safe.

Ayame was still terrified.

"Listen, honey, we're just gonna clean you up and get some medicine in those wounds, OK?"

"O…OK…"

The two women bathed her, taking care not to hurt her, and scrubbed the blood and dirt from her body and hair. After carefully rubbing ointment on her many wounds, they continued by bandaging them. They cut her bangs and hair, fixing it into two braids, and provided her with a silky white gown.

"Will one of you please tie my ribbon back into my hair?" Ayame requested sweetly.

"Of course," Kasumi smiled. She tied the ribbon into a bow on the right side of Ayame's head.

"Arigato," she smiled, suddenly feeling light headed. Black splotches appeared before her eyes before slowly, she lost consciousness...

"All right, then… Let's start the next match…" Hayate suggested with a cough. Just as he finished speaking, two names flashed across the board:

_"Tsurugi Misumi VS. Kankuro"_

"It's about time…" Kankuro mumbled to himself. His sensei sent him a glare and told him to be serious while Gaara just mentally cursed him. However, his attention was taken away from his brother when Akito approached him with Ayame in his arms. Kankuro gawked for a split second before leaving for his match.

"She has several gashes and scars on her wrists, neck, and ankles," Akito informed. "There are bruises covering her body, and a few especially bad ones on her stomach. We believe there may be internal damage there. Also, her ankle is broken, and the brace we supplied won't last long. She is suffering from starvation as well. We suggest taking her to a hospital as soon as possible."

"I'll think about it…" Gaara muttered as he took Ayame from him. He sent him a look that told him to leave, which Akito quickly picked up on. Temari was extremely curious, but knew better than to ask. Baki, however, had no hesitation.

"Who is she?" he quizzed.

Gaara's eyes pierced him. "Why should you care? You refused her long ago." Baki shut his mouth and went back to watching Kankuro. Gaara set the girl on the floor and leaned her back against the wall.

"Gaara… Is that you?" she whispered faintly. Gaara noticed her staring wearily at him through half-lidded eyes and replied with a simple "yes." She smiled softly at him. "I told you we'd find each other again…"


	3. Chapter 3

Temari smirked at her brother's quick victory over his opponent. She hoped that it would appease his temper enough that he wouldn't question Gaara again. She could tell that Baki felt the same.

Kankuro strode up to his team with a prideful, boastful grin plastered on his face. He almost missed the unconscious girl on the floor behind them. He gave Temari a questioning look, which she returned with a shrug.

"Gaara, what-"

"Don't even ask."

Kankuro scowled at him, but bit his tongue at the demonic glare he received.

The matches waned on, until eventually, Temari's turn came. As she left, Gaara muttered, "How are you feeling?"

"All right, I suppose… I've been better…"

Kankuro's head whipped around to Ayame. When did she wake up? And how did Gaara know?

"Who are you, jaan?!" he snapped.

Ayame looked shocked and slightly scared.

"Uh… My name's Ayame… Kimura Ayame." She turned her head to the side in curiosity and asked, "You're Kankuro… right?" Kankuro's eyes widened, causing her to giggle. "I remember you now. You're Gaara's older brother."

"Don't waste your strength on him," Gaara advised. "You need to rest as much as possible."

Kankuro grimaced at Gaara's absurdity.

"By the way…" Gaara continued, directing his attention to Ayame, "I believe this is yours."

He pulled the baby panther from its hiding spot and placed it in her lap.

"Jinsei!" she exclaimed. "Arigato." She smiled and nuzzled the creature close to her face. He purred happily despite being woken from his pleasant slumber. However, this scene was interrupted by a loud cry of pain. The three of them looked below them to see that Temari had knocked out the girl she had been fighting.

"Winner: Temari!" Hayate's voice echoed.

"Ha! Of course Temari won, there's no way we could lose here," Kankuro laughed.

Temari mumbled something about the match being boring and tossed the kunoichi from atop her closed folding fan to the perilous weapons scattered about. A strange boy clad in a green body suit jumped down from across the room and came to her rescue. He looked to Temari.

"That is very cruel," he scolded. "And it is no way to treat a worthy opponent who-"

"Shut up. Just take that pathetic excuse for a ninja and get lost," Temari retorted.

The boy growled, lurched forward, and attacked her. Temari easily blocked and began teasing him further.

"Lee!" a male voice commanded him to stop.

"Gai-sensei…" Lee said, ashamed.

Gaara was fed up. "Temari, get up here! Stop wasting time with that pathetic loser!"

Gaara's input irked the boy further, but he listened to his sensei and backed down.

"Sand Nin… Let me warn you…" Gai said with a smirk, "Lee here is stronger than you think." The siblings ignored his ramblings as Lee and Gai returned to their places.

Temari, now back with her siblings, turned to Ayame.

"So, kid, what's your name?"

"Ayame," said girl smiled brightly.

Kankuro whispered to the former, "Have we seen her somewhere before? She knew my name before I even told her, jaan."

"Oh, and congratulations on the win, Lady Temari," Ayame continued.

"Arigato…."

"So, she knew your name, too."

"Gaara just said my name, you baka!" Temari gave his arm a good punch before sighing. "But, now that you mention it, she does look a little familiar." Kankuro just rubbed his arm and hummed something in agreement. Temari looked Ayame over for the thousandth time today. There was something in those golden orbs she had seen before… in Gaara.

**_PAIN._**


End file.
